Carpet-stretcher.



Patented Mar. l8, I902. J. WHIKEHART. CARPET srnsfcnsn.

(Applicat ion filed Nov. 29, 1901 (N0 Hodl.)

MAW

JOllN lVllIKElIAR'I, OF ZANESVILLE, OHIO.

CARPET-STRETCHER.

SPEJIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 69 5,772, dated March 18, 1902.

Application filed November 29, 1901. Serial No. 84,000. (No model) To all whom it nuty concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN WHIKEHART, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Zanesville, in the county of Muskingum and State of Ohio, have invented a new and Improved Carpet-Stretcher, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to carpet-stretchers, more particularly of the kind which are compact and can be readily folded into a small space and sold as articles of manufacture.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of the several parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a plan View of my device, and Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section thereof.

A longitudinal member 1 is provided at one of its ends with a metallic anchor or claw 2 for the purpose of temporarily engaging the floor and provided at its other end with an upwardly-projecting bent portion 3, which is pivoted at 3" to a board 4, the said board being provided with a cross-piece 15, thus having substantially the form of a T.

Upon one end of the T-shaped board are mounted a pair of brackets 5, bent upward, as shown in Fig. 2, and pivoted at 6 to a lever 7, provided with a longitudinal slot 8. One end of the lever 7 is provided with a handle 9 and the other end with a cross-bar 16, which is in turn provided with teeth 10, disposed after the manner of the teeth of a hand-rake.

A boss 11 extends across the slot 8 in the lever 7, as indicated in Fig. 2, and upon a pivot 12 in the T-shaped board 4 is mounted a small hand-lever 13, provided with ratchetteeth 14 for the purpose of engaging said boss 11. The brackets 5 are secured upon the T- shaped member -l by means of fastenings 17.

The operation of my device is as follows: The carpet to be stretched is placed upon the fioor and nailed'at one edgein the usual manner. The double claw 2 is driven into the floor a short distance by a gentle tap from a hammer or by the pressure of the foot, which may be applied either directly to the claw 2 or to the longitudinal member 1 immediately adjacent to said claw. This affords an anchorage for the machine. The cross-piece 15 normally rests loosely upon the carpet. The teeth 10 are now caused to engage the substance of the carpet and the handle 9 is moved down ward. This movement of course causes the teeth 10 to approach the claw 2, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2, thus stretching the carpet, which is nailed in the usual manner. The hand-lever 13 can be disengaged from the boss 11 whenever desired, thus enabling the handle 9 to be raised in case another stroke is desired. The ratchetteeth 14 by engaging the boss 11 hold all of the parts in the position which they assume when the handle 9 is depressed.

It will be noted that while the general shape of the T-shaped member 4 is longitudinal, yet the brackets 5 are of such form and are so disposed that the pivot 6 is out of alinement with the general plane of the T-shaped board. It will also be noticed that the upwardly-bent end 3 of the longitudinal member 1, which engages the pivot 3, forms a considerable angle relative to said T-shaped board 4.

The object of the upwardly-bent end 3 of the longitudinal member 1 and of the upwardly-bent ends of the brackets 5 is to enable the apparatus to be folded into the smallest and most compact form possible, so that all of the principal members of the device can be brought practically into parallelism with each other.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. As an article of manufacture, a carpetstreteher, comprising a longitudinal member provided at one end with an anchor for engaging the floor and at the other with a bent portion, a T-shaped board provided with a slot in which said longitudinal member is pivoted by means of said bent portion, bracle ets mounted upon said T-shaped member, a

lever provided with a toothed bar and also provided with a longitudinal slot through which said longitudinal member passes, a second lever provided with a rack and pivoted upon said T--shaped board, and a boss upon said first-mentioned lever, for engaging the teeth of said second-mentioned lever.

2. As an article of manufacture, a carpet- I stretcher, comprising a T-shaped board provided with a slot, a longitudinal member provided with an anchor for engaging a floor and pivoted within said slot, brackets secured upon said T-shaped board and curved outof alinement with the general plane thereof, a lever pivoted in said brackets and provided with a toothed bar for engaging a carpet, and means for securing said T-shaped board and said lever in predetermined relative positions at will.

3. As an article of manufacture, a carpet stretcher, comprising a T-shaped board provided with a slot and also provided with upwardly-curved brackets, a longitudinal memname to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

- JOHN XVIIIKEIIART. Witnesses:

A. J. ANDREWS, M. R. MAI-Inn. 

